Sandcastles
by Southside
Summary: Seth has an unexpected visitor.


Disclaimer: I own nothing… sadly.

Author's note: This takes place after 'The Outsider.'

After adding the final touches to his sandwich, Seth Cohen returned the turkey back into the refrigerator. It was yet another boring Wednesday. His 'brother' was at work leaving him alone once again. Although he spent sixteen years as an only child, he hated being alone, especially after he met Ryan… and Marissa.

Well, he didn't _just _meet Marissa, but it felt that way to Seth. He had grown up next door to her, but the two never grew very close. There were times when they were young, they'd play games during small getaways their families took together.

He would never admit it, but Seth had once had a crush on his neighbor. She was the first girl he had ever been attracted to. He'd tease her by pulling her hair, splashing water at her during their swims in the pool, or wrestle her playfully. Those were the highlights of Seth's childhood; unfortunately, they ended when Marissa met Luke.

Even back then, Luke had been bigger and better looking than most boys his age. He and Marissa grew close during fourth grade and officially began dating the year after. Seth was crushed by the news, but he couldn't let anyone know this. From that day on, he wouldn't care about what people thought of him. He would be different and would avoid those usual cliché traps that most boys fell into.

This plan worked somewhat, but it was missing something: a distraction. That is where Summer came in. To lust over someone you know you could never have actually seemed to wok for Seth. He couldn't get hurt in this scenario; he knows he can't have her, so she can't really hurt him like Marissa had done.

This plan has been working to this day. Although, there were a few bumps in the road since his new found brother was chasing after Marissa. By playing matchmaker, he could keep his secret.

Taking a bite of his sandwich, Seth made his way to the den. He set the plate down on the table and switched on the TV. _'So this is how I'm spending the last remaining days of my summer.' _he thought as he flipped through the channels.

His mind began to wander over to Marissa and her plans for tonight. Knowing that she was probably with Luke, Seth tried to get her out of his head, a task that's been getting harder to master for the past couple of weeks.

The loud ringing of the doorbell made him jump. He got up from the couch and peered through the small window. There he saw Marissa, standing nervously. Seth couldn't help but notice how beautiful she looked even in her most casual clothes. Her hair was thrown up in a messy ponytail; she was in her faded jeans and a blue tank top. Many girls spent hours to look beautiful; Marissa did it effortlessly.

Seth regained his composure, opened the door and greeted her. "Hey, Marissa."

She looked a little surprise to see him, but smiled anyway. "Hey, Seth."

He had a good idea about why she was at his door. "Ryan's working tonight. He'll be back soon."

"I know he works tonight."

Seth cocked an eyebrow. "Then why are you here?"

"I just," her eyes focused on the ground, "didn't want to be alone tonight. My parents are trying to work out our money problems, Luke won't talk to me and…" A small sob interrupted her.

He took a hold of her hand and led her inside, shutting the door behind them. He sat her down on the couch and watched as hot tears streamed down her face. She sat there and cried silently as Seth put his arm around her. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what. He always had trouble communicating with the opposite sex.

"I'm sorry about this," she apologized, wiping away her tears. "It all just happened so fast."

"Yeah… uh… I know," he stammered. "It sucks." He rolled his eyes subtlely. _'Wow Seth. You have such a way with words.' _he thought. 

"Are you alone?" she asked after the tears stopped.

"Uh," he cleared his throat. "Yeah. My parents went out for a late dinner. Of course, I'm not invited."

She chuckled. "You always knew how to make me laugh."

"I've been told I'm sarcastically funny… something my parents _really _don't appreciate all too much."

"I like it," she told him softly, never taking her eyes off his. "It suits you."

He leaned a little closer to her; she could feel his hot breath. Seth couldn't believe how close he was to her. She was only inches away from him. _'Go for it, man.' _he encouraged himself. "Marissa, I…"

"You what?" she asked, wild with anticipation.

"Would you like something to eat?" He shut his eyes, not believing what he just said. He didn't notice how Marissa's expression crumbled.

__

'That can't be what he wanted to ask me.' she thought. _'Wait, what did I want him to do?' _Marissa couldn't believe what kinds of thoughts were going through her head. Did she want to kiss him just now? This was Seth; her quirky next door neighbor who she paid very little attention to for years. _'He is cute though…' _

"Marissa?" she heard Seth ask, who sounded as if he was a million miles away.

She shook her head and smiled. "Yeah?"

"Are you okay 'cause you looked like you were completely out of it for like 2 minutes." He had a look of concern on his face.

"I'm fine," she said firmly. "I would like something to eat."

He nodded and led her to his kitchen. He presented her a variety of foods she could have; she settled on a simple turkey sandwich.

Marissa couldn't help but stare at him with a certain sparkle in her eye as he busied himself with her sandwich. He talked admirably about god knows what. She loved how he had such distinctive expressions for every feeling he had. She noticed that he used his hands a lot when he talked, making him even more fun to watch.

"… and now I have this scar on the back of my knee because of it." She smiled and nodded, pretending that she caught all that. He slid the plate, with her sandwich on it, across the counter. "Your sandwich, m'lady."

She picked the sandwich up and took a bite of it. "Mmm," she gave him a thumbs up. "Good stuff. How do you do it?"

"Well," he began, running his hand through his hair in an exaggerated way. "It's a gift. Passed on from generation after generation."

Marissa laughed but stopped when something else caught her attention. "Oh my god." She walked over to the fridge and took something off of it. "I remember this."

He walked towards her and looked over her shoulder. She was holding a picture of him when he was around seven years old. He was standing proudly beside a sandcastle, which he guessed he had built.

"You were there?" he asked her.

She turned around to face him. "Yeah. Don't you remember? Our families hit the beach together for the Fourth of July. We spent the whole day-"

"Building a sandcastle," he finished for her. "It was perfect. We didn't even want to go into the water until it was done." He paused for a moment as something dawned on him. He shook his finger at her. "You destroyed it."

"I did not!" she argued. "You were the one who tripped and fell into it."

"Oh yeah…" he nodded as it all came back to him. "You weren't too happy about that. I recall you chasing me along the beach with a plastic pail."

"Hey, can you blame me?" she smiled. "That sandcastle took hours to build."

"Well," he took the picture from her, "at least we have a picture of it before I fell into it."

"We used to hang out a lot when we were younger," she pointed out, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. "Not as much anymore."

"Yeah, you started to hang out with Luke and all of his friends and-"

"Wait," she shook her head. "That wasn't why we stopped hanging out. You just suddenly stopped talking to me."

"Because you and Luke got together," he explained.

"We could have still hung out if you would have at least talked to me."

"You know what? It doesn't matter," he tossed the picture on the counter. "We're friends now… or something like it. So, it all worked out."

She took a step closer to him. "Why didn't you want to talk to me when I was with Luke?"

"C'mon," he let out a dry laugh. "You were so into him and you didn't need me anymore."

"But I did," she told him. "You were like the first person I could really talk to. I liked you… a lot."

His eyes widened with shock. "Really?"

"Yeah." This time, she wasn't going to let this opportunity slip away again. She took a hold of his face and brought his lips to hers. He must have been surprised because he didn't respond at first. Soon enough, his arms encircled her waist and pulled her closer to him, pressing their bodies together.

He opened his mouth slightly, allowing her to taste him. He caressed her tongue with his own causing her to moan deeply. Seth wasn't sure where this courage to kiss Marissa Cooper came from, but he didn't give a damn. She was in his arms.

The sound of the door opening made them break apart quickly. They both wiped their lips and resumed their positions on opposite sides of the counter as Ryan walked in.

"Hey, guys," he greeted his friends.

"Hey," Marissa retorted. "I have to go." She made a hasty exit.

"What's wrong with her?" Ryan asked as he got himself a coke.

Seth shrugged. "Who knows?" He picked the picture off the counter and bid Ryan goodnight before going back to his room. All the while, he kept feeling his lips. They were actually tingling. He couldn't believe it. He had just kissed Marissa Cooper.

__

'I could still taste her.' he thought.

* * * * * *

That's my short fic. Tell me what you thought of it. 


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